Toward Global Accessibility

The following is a brief statement outlining our commitment to make this site accessible to all our visitors. The design of this website is intended to follow as closely as possible the recommendations of the Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI) sponsored by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C). These recommendations are outlined in the Web Content Accessibilty Guidelines 1.0 (WCAG 1.0) and in US Government Section 508 Guidelines.

We have developed pages that are well-formed, standards compliant and validated, that use browser friendly style sheets, and that present uniformly. In our best judgement, this web site conforms with WAI Level Triple-A guidelines as recommended by in WCAG 1.0 .

If you have any comments or suggestions for improvement, please feel free to Contact us.

Accessibility Policies and Objectives

Use of Color

Color in Page Context

Our current policy is to avoid the use of color to convey special information. We use some color change in headings and backgrounds to help visually define specific page sections, only. Important information is always conveyed in the literal text portion of the page section, and will not lose any meaning if the color is removed or is not visible.

Color in Link Text

We have taken every effort to ensure that navigation of wdfcs.ca is clearly visible, meaningful and easily identifiable. If you experience difficulty navigating this site, please let us know.

Links are presented in text form only, with few exceptions, the FCS logo being one of them. The logo link jumps to the Home Page on all pages except the Home Page.

Navigation links in custom menus are black set against light background and become red against a slightly darker background shade on mouse-over (hover pointing device). No underline is used in either state.

Within the body, except custom menus, link text is indigo blue against the context background. Underlining is used on contextual links, and generally most links within the page content as a whole. Footer navigation follows the provisions set out for the body, but with no underline.

Link text changes to the color red on mouse-over; underlining toggles from on to off, or off to on, as applies to its context.

Active Page

Links in the breadcrumb trail and the footer menu will appear in deep red bold typeface when those links represent the Active Page (also indicated by the Tooltip, “Active Page”). Clicking these links has the same effect as the Skip Navigation link, causing a jump to the start of Main Content in the page.

Navigation

Link Descriptions

We include a brief ‘Tooltip’ to indicate the destination of each link on this site. Links on this site open in the active window at all times. The user will be advised of any new window, which warning will appear within the context of the link, as well as in the Tooltip.

Revised 24 October 2007. Tool tip text is being confined to outgoing links, images (title and alternate), certain text links and ‘mystery meat navigation’ (those with no alternate text when images are off). All others are removed to prevent duplication of link phrase when verbosity is enabled in screen readers.

Access Keys

In its present form, only one access key is programmed into the pages of this site—[Alt]+[9] and [Enter]will return the visitor to the Home page.

Update: The debate over developer defined special keys has waged long and netted fruitless. Because universal support is still largely non-existent, former supporters and promoters of Access Keys have now begun to reverse their position. Not without a good fight, mind you.

The practice used on this site was largely based on earlier writings of Jukka “Yucca” Korpela, formerly of Helsinki University, and creator of the free information site, IT and communications. His 1998 paper, Using accesskey attribute in HTML forms and links laid the groundwork and spelled out the practices followed by a good many developers these past years. However, the paper was revised by the author in December, 2005, with express advice to developers to refrain from or discontinue the implementation of accesskey attributes in web pages. With respect to these late recommendations, Access Key assignments have been removed from this site.

Tab Index

None of the navigation in these pages is tab-indexed, at present. Visitors may expect normal functioning of the Tab key as applies to their particular user agent. As development progresses, we will introduce the Tab-Index feature to best optimize functionality and usability of the site.

Skipping Main Navigation

Presently, most of our pages have included navigation placed at the beginning of the markup code, where Assistive Technology Devices will encounter it immediately upon accessing the page. This navigation permits the user to skip directly to the main content of the page.

Back to Top Links

A recent paper, “Back to Top” links considered harmful, by Jukka Korpela (January, 2006), describes much of the thinking around the use of links within a page which direct a user to the top of the document. While we believe that our implementation of ‘Top’ links had met with Mr. Korpela’s recommendations governing their use, it is nonetheless moot that such 'user interfaces' do indeed distract the user, and duplicate already existing browser functions, namely the Home key, Page Up, Page Down, and so on. In this light, the use of these type of links has been discontinued and the links removed.

Revised 24 October 2007. A Start of Page link has been installed at the end of the document markup. While this adds a link to the tab index, it represents an end-of-document flag, as well. As a visual tool, it serves as a refresh tool without re-polling the server. The link is hooked to the true start of page (first child of body element).

Images

Image Descriptons

We make every effort to include descriptive Help Tips (alternative text) with every image on the site. Where applicable, images are accompanied by descriptive captions below the picture.

Links Embedded in Images

Revised 24 October 2007. Links are presented as visible text throughout this site. Any link that appears in the form of an image will have a text only alternate available. This also applies to image maps and graphical navigation.

Section Descriptions

Help Tips which briefly describe the type of content in each section of the pages will be implemented to assist the user in identifying the general topic at that point in the page.

Revised 24 October 2007. See above note on tool tips.

Pop-Up Windows

It is the policy of wdfcs.ca to open all links in the active window, including those which take the user to pages away from our site. We do not implement any built-in navigation to move the user “Back” to previously visited pages, or page sections. The normal functioning of the user agent’s Back button, the Backspace key, or applicable viewing device navigation is not manipulated by any of our pages.

Use of Scripting Languages (JavaScript)

Scripts have been implemented to secure e-mail addresses so that they need no be incorporated in the HTML source code of the page. If javascript is disabled in your browser or reading device, no e-mail contact information will be visible in the page body. You may still contact our webmaster at this domain through normal e-mail, or contact Wainwright District Family and Community Services at the telephone number or address provided on the Contact Us page.

Acronyms & Abbreviations

In the development of this site we will make every effort to include definitions and descriptions of all acronyms and abbreviations at the point of their occurance. Hovering on an acronym or abbreviation will reveal a Help Tip with the expanded form of the expression.

~ October, 2007

Off-Site Web-Standards Resources

Web Accessibility Initiative

Read all about the W3C Web Accessibility Initiative at, www.w3.org/WAI.

World Wide Web Consortium

To learn more about the about the World Wide Web Consortium, and the important role this body plays in developing standards for the internet, please visit their site at, www.w3.org.

Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 1.0

For complete details, please see, W3C Recommendation 5-May-1999.

US Government Section 508 Compliance

For complete details please see, Electronic and Information Technology Accessibility Standards.